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Why Dellin Betances’ slower fastball
isn’t a big deal for the Mets quite yet
Dellin Betances Courtesy of New York Mets
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TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | MARCH 13-MARCH 19, 2020 29
BY JOE PANTORNO
If there is ever an example
to point toward when saying
that the results of spring training
don’t really matter, it’s with
the Mets’ newest reliever, Dellin
Betances.
At least, that’s the message
they should (and at times, have)
been conveying.
The former Yankees fireballer
made a less-than-stellar
spring-training debut for
the Queens club on Saturday
against the Washington Nationals.
It took 24 pitches to get
through four batters that included
two walks and a wild
pitch on his way to three runs,
two of them earned.
The lack of control and command
was one thing, but the
most eyebrow-raising aspect of
his outing was that his fastball
ranged between 89-90 mph.
That number continues to
drop considerably over the last
two seasons.
In 2018, a healthy Betances
was averaging nearly 98 mph
on his four-seamer — which
was his average speed over the
past five seasons.
A lost 2019 season provided
an extremely limited sample
size, but Betances’ brief return
to the mound after a shoulder
impingement and strained lat
saw his fastball average 94.9
mph in his two-thirds of an
inning before he tore his left
Achilles.
The 31-year-old right-hander’s
fastball is the very essence
of his pitching repertoire. An
overpowering four-seamer is
the set-up pitch for his cutter,
which looks like a fastball off
the release, but is roughly 10
to 14 mph slower and cuts away
from the batter in the final
third of its journey to the plate.
Not having one of his pitches
right would be problematic for
a two or three-pitch hurler.
But before Mets fans hit the
panic button, that singular outing
with the Yankees last season
could help provide some
insight on Betances’ debut over
the weekend, however.
Whether it was apprehension
or simply taking things
slowly after coming back from
that shoulder and lat injury, his
stuff was noticeably slower in
those eight pitches.
Fast-forward to Saturday
with the Mets, and Betances is
acclimating to a recovered portion
of his body that is vital to
his delivery.
The left Achilles is a part of
the plant foot that supports the
driving force of any pitcher’s
motion.
At 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds,
Betances has a tremendous
driving motion toward the
plate that allows him to generate
such power on his fastball,
thus putting more stress on his
left foot when it is planted on
the mound following the kicking
or striding motion toward
the plate.
The less driven force coming
down on that foot, the less
power that is put in his delivery,
which would create the
threat of Betances putting
more strain on his arm to generate
more power. That’s the
last thing needed after he spent
much of last season battling
arm problems.
The important thing for Betances
and the Mets was that
he was back on the mound and
felt good. The longer he stays
healthy, the more likely that
velocity on the fastball comes
back.
But it isn’t worth removing
the reins yet to see if it’s there
yet. The Mets must take it slow
to ensure they’ll have their bullpen
upgrade for the majority of
2020 rather than run the risk of
losing him early in the season.
/QNS.COM
